


Face-Off

by ladymacbethsspot



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Beards (Facial Hair), Facial Hair, Facial Shaving, Fluff and Humor, Humor, M/M, Mild Smut, Oral Sex, Shaving
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-03
Updated: 2018-01-03
Packaged: 2019-02-23 20:37:45
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,675
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13198101
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ladymacbethsspot/pseuds/ladymacbethsspot
Summary: Levi gets reluctantly dragged into a contest with Nile. There are unforeseen consequences for his relationship. There's unfortunate facial hair.





	Face-Off

**Author's Note:**

> I wanted to write something fun and silly, that included Nile. I hope everyone enjoys!
> 
> Find me on [Tumblr](https://ladymacbethsspot.tumblr.com/) where I reblog Eruris, garbage, and post occasional writing (that ends up here).

The morning Levi forgot to shave, Erwin found himself mildly surprised. It was normally impossible to prevent Levi’s meticulous morning routine, the bathroom’s pull as inevitable as gravity once he woke.

Erwin said nothing.

Monday was a holiday, after all, and Lord knows the tightly-wound man deserved a break. Instead, Erwin smiled, running his thumb idly over the prickle of shadowy stubble framing Levi’s jaw, before tugging him back under the covers. There weren’t nearly enough long weekends to spoil his husband and he wasn’t going to miss a single chance.

 

* * *

 

As the week wore on, Erwin noticed a strange thing. Each morning when Levi awoke he immediately headed to the bathroom. Nothing odd about that. He showered while Erwin made coffee and boiled water for tea. But he left the bathroom a little earlier than usual, and the stubble remained.

In a way, it was nice. For once, Levi looked a little more relaxed, a little less severe. And Erwin was surprised by how much he liked it. He liked waking up to see Levi curled against his chest, hair mussed, eyes soft, cheeks rough and darkened. He liked the way it scratched, a subtle reminder of where Levi’s face was when they cuddled. He liked the way it pricked his lips and dragged against his skin when they kissed. Most of all, he liked the long rough scrapes it made, turning his flesh hot with desire, when they made love.

That week Erwin said nothing, and the stubble remained.

 

* * *

 

The second week Erwin began to wonder, curiosity growing each day. It wheedled at him, tickling almost as much as Levi’s bristly little kisses. By Wednesday morning the obtrusive thoughts had come to lurk everywhere he turned. They sat heavily in the corners, closing in, finally overcoming him. While Levi lifted a mug of tea to his mouth, blowing gently at the steam, Erwin broached the subject.

“You haven’t shaved the last few days.”

“No,” Levi corrected, “I haven’t shaved the last 12 days.”

“Any particular reason?” Erwin prodded.

“It’s No-shave November,” Levi answered, his flat tone giving nothing away.

“It’s January.”

“Fine, I’m growing a playoffs beard, then.”

Erwin sighed. “Levi, you don’t follow any sports.” He fixed Levi with a steady gaze, adding, “It’s not that I dislike it, I’m just curious. _Are_ you growing a beard?”

Levi stared down into his drink, as though expecting to find an answer hidden within its depths, before responding carefully, “Not exactly. Or, maybe? I don’t know. It’s a sort of challenge.”

Erwin hadn’t been expecting a statement like this. If Levi had said he was growing a beard, then Erwin would know where he stood. But this answer, this half-formed, half-excuse of a thing, was not enough. Instead of sating his desire it only served to make him more curious, this dodging, evasive conversation.

“A challenge with yourself?” Erwin asked. Levi paused, and shook his head, “Then with who?” Levi made a face, thin lips twisting down at their corners, brow furrowing.

“Nile,” he admitted.

“My friend, Nile? Nile Dok?” Levi gave a curt nod, finishing his tea. “But, why, Levi?” Erwin felt even more bewildered than before.

“…Made a bet,” Levi grumbled, heading to the stove to pour more hot water from the kettle into his mug.

“What did you bet?”

The mug was set on the counter next to the kettle, a silent statement marked with a click. Levi turned, frowning slightly. Erwin knew the look. It meant he was about to say something he knew Erwin wouldn’t want to hear.

“I ran into Nile at work a few weeks ago and he bet me he could grow a better beard. Might as well have just called me a child. I agreed if he’d shave that ratty trash ‘stache off and start fresh to make it fair. So, here I am. Growing a beard,” Levi finished, spacing the words precisely, hands open, offering his explanation.

Erwin sighed, rubbing his thumbs into his temples. Nile’s unconscious ability to raise Levi’s hackles normally wasn’t an issue. But sometimes it was. He knew his old friend had a bit of a competitive streak. Still, this was not a fight Nile should be picking. Not with Levi. Not with a man who latched onto a challenge with the tenacity of a wolf, sinking teeth deeper with every attempt to dislodge him, locking crushing jaws into an inescapable hold.

 “Okay,” Erwin said, “When will you be finished?”

Levi turned away, the tone in his voice betraying the displeasure of his hidden expression, “The last Friday of the month.”

Erwin steeled himself- two and a half weeks to go.

Levi turned back to look at Erwin. Grey eyes searched his face for a reaction. As the moment stretched it hit Erwin suddenly: Levi regretted making this bet. His husband was never unsure like this, never wavered or sought explicit permission. No, they both understood each other too well for that to be necessary. Still, Levi was looking _to_ him, looking for something _from_ him. Seeing Levi without his unshakable air of confidence sent a pang of something sharp corkscrewing through Erwin’s chest. He softened. He smiled. Levi needed reassurance; he was happy to give.

“Well, I’m sure you’ll have a full, handsome beard by then. Everyone will be asking who the new, hot lumberjack in my life is.” Levi shook his head and chuckled, the tension in his face replaced by the slightest crinkle around his eyes. 

 

* * *

 

By the next week it had become more than stubble. It didn’t look bad, exactly, Erwin told himself, but it didn’t look great either. As stubble, it had framed Levi’s jaw, making him look older in a masculine way. It had complemented his dark hair, given him a rugged look Erwin found adventurous and wild. Not to mention how it spiced things up in the bedroom. Compared to Levi’s normally impeccably groomed appearance, it had been an exciting change of pace. But this? This was no longer dashing, no longer gave off that same outdoorsy charm.

This had fallen on the other side of some imperceptible line. Erwin wasn’t exactly sure when it happened, but Levi’s facial hair had become something that made him look tired, drained, and drawn. Now it just looked like his husband had lost his job and the stress of the situation was preventing him from sleeping. Like he no longer cared about his appearance. Like he had given up.

It was too long to be stubble, but it was, at the same time, nowhere near what could properly be called a beard. Patchy, long enough in some places, but barely more than dark pricks of hair in others. It also seemed that, while Levi could grow facial hair in most places one would expect, the hair above his lip would never choose to join up with the rest, like it was ashamed to admit that it was really a part of the whole thing.

That week Levi grumbled about work. It was hard to get him to loosen up at the end of the day. When they got into bed, he turned the lights off immediately and faced the wall.

Erwin knew attributing it to the contest made no sense, but he couldn’t shake the suspicion that it was becoming a point of irritation for Levi. He’d catch Levi scratching absently at the hair, frowning slightly, or staring at his reflection in the mirror with a look of mild distaste. Always, Erwin would intercept him with kisses, taking small hands in large ones, pressing murmured words of love and praise to his husband’s temples and cheeks.

Careful to mention nothing, they navigated the days, and the hair remained.

 

* * *

 

The final week was excruciating. By this point Erwin had decided that he did not, in fact, find Levi’s beard attractive. He found it a bit sad and slightly dirty looking. Even worse, it was clear that Levi was as unhappy about it as he was, if not more.

Levi’s mood darkened. His beard stubbornly refused to fill in or become respectable.

He was tense, snapping sharply at perceived slights, more easily frustrated by breaks to their routine. He took increasingly long, increasingly hot showers, as though the scorching water would release him from the burden the bet had become. The toll it was taking on both of them was set into sharp relief when, one night, Levi stopped Erwin mid-kiss with a mumbled excuse. The half-hearted ‘too tired’ as he extracted himself carefully from Erwin’s arms, moving as far away as he could without leaving the bed, dropped, heavy as stones, to the bottom of Erwin’s gut.

Erwin had to hold himself back from counting down the hours until Friday. With each day, he renewed his determination to not show up at Nile’s house and strangle his so-called friend.

 

* * *

 

The day of reckoning dragged its heels every painful step of the way, but, nonetheless, it finally arrived. On the way home from work Erwin stopped by the shopping center to pick up a few things he hoped Levi wouldn’t be offended by. A cake of real shaving soap, sandalwood scented, and new blades for a favorite safety razor. Returning to the apartment, he assembled his purchases in the bathroom. He replaced the blade in Levi’s razor, unable to hide his pleasure at finding it as immaculately clean as all of his husband’s belongings. He found his old boar-bristle brush, rinsing and placing it in a small bowl to soak in warm water.

He waited.

When the locks clicked open and Levi entered the apartment, Erwin was there to meet him. For the first time in a few weeks Levi looked pleased, almost cheerful. “How did it go?” Erwin asked, feeling relief clear the air around.

“Great. I won.” Levi replied.

“Are you happy you won?”

“I’m happy it’s over.”

Erwin smiled. Levi smiled.

Gathering Levi to his chest in a tight embrace, Erwin leaned down and whispered into his hair, “Congratulations, my sexy lumberjack.” Levi snorted, suppressing a small laugh as he kicked off his shoes and set his bag down.

“I know you hate it. Don’t lie. I hate it. It looks disgusting.”

Erwin chuckled. “I don’t hate it, I could never hate any part of you. I _do_ think I might hate Nile now though…” Another small huff from the man nuzzling comfortably into his button-down made Erwin loosen his grip slightly. Levi dug a phone from his pocket, holding it out as he pushed out of Erwin’s arms.

“Then you’ll love this. Here’s the final picture.” He turned the phone and Erwin squinted at the screen. Two men stood side by side. Nile on the left, Levi on the right. Nile’s mustache and goatee were exactly as Erwin had remembered, but even thinner, even scragglier. Sparse long hairs covered his chin and dusted his upper lip. What Erwin didn’t recognize were the extra bits of hair, sticking out on his neck and cheeks, all disconnected and meandering. No wonder he shaved most of it off, the rest was a shameful mess. Next to him, Levi didn’t look quite as bad. Sure, things were patchy in places. Yes, it was true that the hair on his jaw and chin wasn’t all the same length. It was also undeniable that his mustache still firmly refused to join the party with the rest of his beard, despite the obvious sloppy invitation. Still, overall it was a somewhat better attempt at a beard. Erwin shook his head, laughing at his friend’s ridiculous appearance.

“How did you decide whose was better?”

“Our coworkers voted. I won 10 – 4. Then I made a note to give everyone who voted for Nile a shitty peer-report,” Levi deadpanned.

Erwin laughed again, and tugged Levi towards the bathroom. “As much as I love this look on you, Levi, I also have a surprise I think you’ll like.”

Entering the bathroom, Levi’s eyes lit up as they fell on the shaving supplies. Erwin pointed to the counter next to the sink. “Sit and take your shirt off, I don’t want to get shaving cream on it.” Levi complied, unbuttoning his shirt and placing it, folded, on the counter before hoisting himself up to sit. Erwin wet a face towel, and handed it to Levi who patted it against his neck and chin while Erwin worked the shaving soap into a lather with the brush. When he’d built up enough of the foamy soap, Erwin applied it to Levi’s face.

The brush swirled and slid over Levi’s cheeks, tracing along his jaw and down his neck, carefully covering every hair in turn. It created peaks and whorls of fragrant soap in its wake, hiding dark hairs in a creamy layer, a thick blanket of deep snow laid gently over unsightly underbrush. Erwin tilted his chin up, miming an action Levi repeated. Pulling skin taut, the razor travelled through the soap, leaving fresh, straight traces. Sliding over each area once, twice, lather renewed between passes, bit by bit revealing smooth, pale skin. Levi sat: quiet, unmoving, eyes closed, with a rapturous expression on his face. When Erwin had finished, he wiped the last of the soap away. As the warm towel stroked against Levi’s cheek, the smaller man shivered, a tremor of bliss running through his body.

Erwin stifled a moan at the sight. The increasing tightness of his jeans hinted at how much he’d missed seeing Levi’s skin. Missed seeing Levi’s cheeks, pink from the friction and pressure of the razor, his sharp chin, his barely parted lips. Almost on instinct, Erwin lifted a hand, fingertips trailing from earlobe to mouth, an unbroken, smooth line. They paused there, and Erwin sucked in a small breath when Levi’s eyes opened. Another small breath left him when Levi’s tongue pressed and slid against his thumb, guiding into a waiting mouth for a playful, wet bite.

Moments later Erwin wasn’t certain how it happened. How he found his back and ass pressed against the bathroom wall. How his pants and underwear had ended up in a pile on the floor. How his hands had tangled into Levi’s dark, silky hair. He lost focus on everything but watching Levi’s mouth, lips wrapped tightly around his cock, cheeks hollowed, throat working against him. Smooth, slick, and soft, he let himself be hypnotized by the motion of Levi’s mouth.

Struggling to hang on, to hold back, Erwin grunted when Levi’s lips left him. He watched in silent appreciation as Levi rubbed a freshly-shaven cheek against the tight, hot skin of his cock. Hips twitched in a small jump and Levi looked up, their eyes locking. A small hand wrapped around his length, guiding the slick head slowly along the sharp-angled jawbone from ear to ear. Tracing back, Levi’s chin teased at Erwin, resting the tip between it and his lower lip, his head moving in small circles as he pressed forward. Erwin groaned as precum smeared over unbroken, unblemished skin- leaving it shiny and slick.

The low vibration of a chuckle travelled between them, carried from Levi’s mouth through where their bodies touched, stoking the desire in Erwin’s groin. Then his cock disappeared slowly, taken into Levi’s mouth again, pressed and sucked in between short bobs and quick breaths.

He didn’t last long, couldn’t when faced with such a perfect sight.

Erwin came, staring like a starving man at the face he knew so well, but had missed so terribly.

 

* * *

 

The next evening Erwin and Levi attended a social gathering organized by Levi’s workplace. They were standing, chatting with coworkers and laughing amiably over the business of the unfortunate beard contest, when they heard a familiar voice behind them.

“Come here, Marie, you’ve got to see it. If you thought mine was bad, just wait until you see Levi!” It was Nile. “Erwin, Levi!” they turned as Nile hailed them.

Nile’s face fell.

Marie snorted, Erwin stifled a laugh, and Levi rolled his eyes.

Levi had already shaved.

 

Nile had not.

**Author's Note:**

> Comments/feedback/etc. always welcome!


End file.
